Irreplaceable
by Rubyclaw
Summary: Saitama doesn't care about much, but losing the one closest to him is his greatest fear - how will he react when he is confronted with it?


" _Sensei!_ Help me! I can't stop!" Genos shouted as he rocketed through the streets, uncontrollably incinerating everything in his path. Saitama was running after him, but there didn't seem to be much he could do. Something went wrong in Genos's brain; his cybernetic body was completely beyond control.

"Genos!" Saitama shouted after him. "Genos, stop it! Calm down!"

"I can't, I- I- I-" his voice broke down as he landed, repeated the same glitched word over and over until his voice died completely, the yellow light in his eyes fading out.

" **Hero Saitama detected,"** He spoke again, in a mechanical voice that wasn't his. " **Destroy all heroes."** In an instant, the cyborg's eyes flashed red as he (or... _it)_ charged at Saitama. He was fast. Faster than usual. The other hero barely had time to block the attack.

"Genos, please..." Saitama grunted, looking into the face of what used to be his disciple. "I don't want... to hurt you..."

" **I am not Genos,"** the robotic voice answered coldly. " **Genos has been destroyed."** Immediately the robot attacked again, and Saitama _felt_ that one. This was serious. A serious fight – wasn't that what he'd always wanted?

No. It wasn't. Not like this. This wasn't fun. It wasn't exciting. It was painful. Every blow Saitama landed cut deeper and deeper into his own soul. The fight took longer than he expected. Far too long. Finally Genos was almost destroyed, his limbs and torso gone; nothing more than a head and shoulders, with his core cracked and fizzling. Saitama turned around, ready to leave, ready to forget this had ever happened. Ready to regret he had ever gotten that close to someone. Ready to close off his heart for good this time. Suddenly, he heard something from behind him:

" _Sen...sei..."_ Genos's voice croaked. His _real_ voice. Saitama whirled around. His face was wet – was he _crying?_ The sight of the cyborg's broken, helpless body was almost too much to bear. He rushed to his partner's side, kneeling, too afraid to pick him up, too afraid to touch him. "I am so happy... you finally got to have... _a real fight."_

"Genos, no..." Saitama whispered, but it was too late: a single puff of steam floated from the cyborg's lips as his core shattered and the light went out in his eyes. He was gone.

 _Did he... did he_ feel _that?_ The thought pierced Saitama's chest. _Was he... conscious? The whole time?! Did I just kill..._ The thought couldn't form completely before his heart was overwhelmed by feeling he hadn't felt in a _very_ long time. He closed his eyes tightly in agony as an ungodly scream erupted from his lips.

* * *

Saitama opened his eyes, still crying and shivering. He wasn't sure where he was. It was dark. Was it... was it his apartment? He was in the middle of the city seconds ago... He looked to the side and jumped a little when he discovered a very concerned Genos sitting on the futon next to him. The futon. He was sitting on his futon. Was it... was it a dream? He didn't feel any different now... He reached out with a shaking arm and touched Genos's face softly, just to make sure. He broke down sobbing and fell into the other man's chest, embracing him.

" _Sensei?"_

"You... you're real..." Saitama breathed, barely audible.

"Yes, I am," Genos replied. "Are you _ok?"_ Saitama couldn't speak; he held the cyborg tightly, shivering. Genos embraced him back, softly placing a hand on the back of his teacher's head. "You were having a dream. It's over now. Try to breathe slowly." Saitama wanted to try, but he couldn't think clearly. He _killed Genos._ He consciously decided to kill his closest friend. Were they more than friends? He couldn't remember.

" _Sensei,_ I'm going to go make you some tea. Chamomile. It'll help."

"No!" Saitama shouted holding him tighter. He thought he heard something crack, and he panicked. "Don't leave... please..."

"Ok." They held each other for a few more minutes. " _Sensei_... I've never seen you like this... Do you think you can tell me what happened?"

"You... you you you..." He couldn't say it. He couldn't even form the sentence in his mind.

"Saitama," the cyborg whispered. "I'm right here. I'm not going to leave. Come on," He helped the other man to his feet, never letting go, and started helping him walk to the kitchen.

"Genos..." Saitama said, louder this time. He reached up to the cyborgs face and pulled him close for a kiss. The cyborgs lips were softer than he expected. Genos was surprised, but relaxed after a few seconds. It didn't last long before Saitama pulled away.

" _S...sensei..."_ Genos murmured. Was he blushing, or was that just the light? Saitama looked away, his face suddenly feeling hot.

"S...sorry," he muttered. "I can get there myself." He walked over to the table and sat down, burying his face in his hands. Damn he was shook up. Why would he do that? They were just roommates. He remembered that now. Still, the kiss had helped him settle down. And Genos didn't seem upset about it. He had a warm cup of chamomile tea ready in front of his teacher in minutes. Saitama accepted it and smiled. Genos was still standing, watching him take a sip. It was good. He must've put honey in it. Saitama wasn't even aware they _had_ honey. Or chamomile, for that matter. "Would ya sit down? You're making me nervous." Genos apologized and took a seat. There was another pause.

"I've never seen you cry before, _Sensei,"_ Genos remarked quietly.

"Yeah, sorry, I just... had a bad dream."

"You've been having those a lot lately, haven't you?"

"How would you know?"

"I do sleep, however a limited amount of background processes are running in the meantime. I can have the mechanical part of my processor periodically scan your biosigns while in sleep mode. Lately I've found –"

"God Genos, twenty words or less!" Saitama snapped, rubbing his temple with two fingers. Genos paused a moment, thinking.

"I keep an eye on you when you're sleeping. You've been restless." Saitama sighed and nodded.

"I keep having dreams where you die," Saitama told him. "I know why too – you're always getting ripped up by monsters; it's only a matter of time before something happens that your doctor can't fix... And that's what it's always been: some monster ripping you up."

"But tonight was different?"

"I killed you, Genos. I had a dream where I had to _kill_ you." There was a long, uncomfortable silence. Saitama tried to change the subject. "I didn't know we had this kind of tea."

"Yeah," Genos answered, his face darkening. "I keep it. I don't usually need it; it's just... I watched an evil cyborg murder my family. It was fairly traumatic. Occasionally I have flashbacks. The tea helps."

"Ah jeez, Genos, I..." Saitama answered, not meaning to remind Genos of his past. "You didn't need to do this for me. You should save it if you need it."

"No, no, it's fine. Really. I haven't had a flashback since... since I met you." Something surfaced in Genos's eyes, something intimate; he quickly shoved it back down again, smiling warmly. "My mom would always make this for me when I had nightmares. I figured it would help." Saitama smiled back, thankful for having such a thoughtful friend.

Saitama finished his tea and got up, sitting the cup by the side of the sink. He got sight of the microwave clock: 3 am. "Jeez, it's late," he said. "I'm feeling a lot better now; thanks. I think we both had better get to bed, in case something happens tomorrow." He started heading back towards the futon.

"Saitama?" Genos asked quietly. Saitama stopped walking. Genos used his name – he never did that. The bald hero turned around, surprised and confused. Genos really was blushing, and hard. How did that work? Did he still have blood? " _Sensei_ why did you kiss me earlier?"

 _Shit, I was hoping he wouldn't ask..._ Saitama thought, the blood rushing to his face. "Listen, Genos..." How could he say it? He wasn't even sure... "I haven't cared this much about someone... about _anyone_... in such a long time... And I really thought I lost you; it seemed so real and I thought... Ugh, nevermind... I'm sorry; I shouldn't have –"

"It's ok. I understand," Genos interrupted quietly. A small black bead of liquid started to form in the corner of his eye – was he leaking? "I... I didn't think you cared about me like that; I'm always being a nuisance, getting in the way..."

"You're not a nuisance, Genos. I need someone to keep me busy, really. I've felt so much less _dead_ since I met you; you have no idea –"

"I do. I do have an idea. I've felt the same way."

"Genos..." The cyborg's whole face flushed red, and he averted his eyes, embarrassed. Saitama couldn't think of anything to say, so he walked forward again and kissed his companion on the lips. Genos fell into his embrace, kissing back softly.

"I'm sorry," Genos replied when they separated, oil beginning to stream down his cheeks. He wasn't leaking; he was crying. "I'll try not to be so reckless anymore; I don't mean to scare you..."

"It's alright, calm down," Saitama reassured him. "I'm not upset with you, I promise." He kissed the cyborg again. It was a little weird kissing a man, but he thought he could get used to it. "Listen, I don't really know how I feel. I don't. But I know you're always there for me, and I appreciate that. I want to be there for you like that. You deserve that much." Genos leaned up against his shoulder, and Saitama gently placed a hand on his head, feeling through his hair. Now was not the time to worry about getting oil on his pajamas. He waited a little for Genos to calm down before gently suggesting, "It is late. We should go to bed." Genos nodded, and they both laid down together after Saitama turned off the kitchen light. Saitama gently kissed the cyborg's forehead, and they fell asleep together.


End file.
